The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may or may not constitute prior art.
A typical driveline in a motor vehicle includes a transfer case or differential connected between the drive wheels of the motor vehicle and the engine and transmission. The differential is employed to distribute power from the transmission to each of the drive wheels. A typical differential includes an input member that rotates a housing and a plurality of side gears. One of the side gears is connected to a first half axle shaft and another is connected to a second half axle shaft. Each half axle shaft in turn is connected to a drive wheel. In addition, in a three output differential, the housing may be directly connected to a shaft member to distribute power to another set of drive wheels or to a power takeoff unit.
In three output differentials, the housing must be able to support the transfer of torque from the transmission to the second set of drive wheels or to the power takeoff unit. Traditionally, in order to have a high torque capacity, the housing of the differential must be one piece. Accordingly, there is room in the art for a high torque capacity differential that is easy to assemble and that reduces manufacturing costs.